1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a Retractable Funnel.
2. Description of Related Art
Funnels have been used in a variety of applications for years. As is surely apparent, the purpose of the funnel is typically to permit a user to pour a fluid from one reservoir into another without spilling it. As such, the top opening of a funnel is typically wider than the bottom opening, the bottom opening being configured to fit within the opening at the top of a reservoir. Because they require a certain elongated configuration in order to be effective, it is also somewhat unwieldy for storage and transfer. The result of this unwieldiness is that the funnels are many times not available when they are needed. There have been several attempts in the prior art at correcting these problems. An example of one of these attempts is found in FIG. 1.
FIGS. 1A and 1B are perspective views of an example of a conventional collapsible funnel. The Kiebold collapsible funnel 10 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,557,378) shown in FIG. 1A in its collapsed form, is essentially a plurality of nested rings terminating in an outer ring 12. As can be seen in FIG. 1B, when the inner ring 14 is pulled away from the outer ring 12, a series of telescoping segments 16 extend to form the extended funnel 10. As can be understood, the inner ring 14 is inserted within the opening in the reservoir to be filled, and the fluid is poured into the opening 18 in the funnel 10. The problem with the Kiebold funnel is that it is not adaptable to existing reservoirs. Therefore, while the funnel 10 is portable, it must still be stored separate from the reservoir into which the fluid is to be poured. It would be much better if the funnel 10 could be configured such that it always exists in close proximity to the reservoir in which it is desirable to fill. A further problem with the prior funnel 10 is that there isn't a cap designed to work with it that will also work as a cap on the reservoir. What is needed therefore, is a collapsible or otherwise portable funnel that can be kept in close proximity to the reservoir to be filled so that you gain more utility, and furthermore that it actually be integrated, if possible, with the reservoir including the ability for the reservoir's cap to cover the funnel itself.
Another attempt at solving this problem was provided by Martin, U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,521, for a "Cap with a Collapsible Funnel," and is shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is an exploded partial perspective view of a second conventional collapsible funnel. The device comprises a telescoping conduit 20 designed to be attachable to a reservoir 22 such that the mouth 24 of the conduit 20 fills the role of a funnel. The Martin device further is configured to permit a cap 26 to be screwed thereon. While the Martin device does solve the cap problem, the problem with the Martin device is that it is not integratable into an existing reservoir. In fact, the Martin device requires a special hole with special dimensions and other configurations in order for it to be installed into the reservoir 22. As such, the Martin device is unsuitable to solve the aforementioned problems, in particular because you cannot use the Martin device with existing reservoirs, but only have the reservoir be manufactured such that the Martin device is already a part of it.